The Longest Night
by Bohemian Anne
Summary: Rose stays in the boat, and Jack and Cal end up in the water.


THE LONGEST NIGHT 

Jack and Rose pushed their way through the crowd jostling around one of the few remaining lifeboats. As they drew near, they could hear Lightoller shouting, "Women and children only!"

Jack pushed Rose forward, toward the boat.

Rose shook her head. "I'm not going without you."

"Get in the boat, Rose."

They both turned at the sound of Cal's voice. "Yes. Get in the boat, Rose."

Rose stared at him, backing away. Cal looked her over, taking in her sodden dress and the thin steerage blanket wrapped around her shoulders.

"My God, look at you. You look a fright." He shrugged out of his woolen overcoat and placed it around her shoulders, tossing the blanket to Jack.

Rose accepted the coat, but still backed away, clinging to Jack. Jack pushed her toward the boat again. "Go on. I'll get the next one."

"No. Not without you!"

"I'll be all right. I'm a survivor, remember?"

Cal was watching them, seeing the emotion between them. He clenched his jaw angrily, realizing that Rose was willing to die for this gutter rat. But even as these thoughts ran through his mind, another thought occurred to him. He leaned close to them.

"I have an arrangement with an officer on the other side of the ship. Jack and I can get off safely. Both of us."

Jack didn't believe for a minute that Cal actually had an arrangement, but he smiled at Rose reassuringly. "See? I've got my own boat to catch."

Both Cal and Jack urged Rose forward. Cal smiled, a bit nervously. "Better hurry...it's almost full."

"Step aboard, miss!" Lightoller helped Rose into the boat. She clung to Jack's hand as long as she could before they were separated.

"Lower away!" The boat began making its way toward the water. Rose looked up at Cal and Jack, tears streaming down her face.

"You're a good liar," Cal whispered to Jack as soon as Rose was out of earshot.

"Almost as good as you," Jack responded, still watching Rose. "There's uh...there's no arrangement, is there?"

"Oh, there is. Not that you'll benefit much from it." He gave Jack a triumphant smile. "I always win, Jack. One way or another."

Jack looked down at Rose, his face grim. He hadn't believed Cal, of course, but he pitied Rose. If Cal survived, and he did not, Cal would undoubtedly find a way to make Rose stay with him, and Jack knew how miserable Rose was with Cal.

They watched as the boat drew closer to the water. Rose tensed, her hands clutching the seat, as though she was trying to keep herself from jumping out. Both Jack and Cal tensed, too, watching her, hoping that she would stay in the boat. Rose looked up at them, still crying, as the boat reached the water and began to float away.

Jack breathed a sigh of relief. At least Rose was safely away from the ship. He glanced at Cal, but Cal was already walking away, seeking the officer that he had bribed. Jack looked around, then hurried away, hoping that he could find a boat that would let men on. He knew that he had little chance of survival if he wound up in the water.

XXXXX

Cal spotted Murdoch near one of the boats. He was shouting, brandishing a gun. "Women and children only, damn you!"

Cal hurried forward, along with several other men. Murdoch waved the gun, keeping them at bay. "Keep back! Keep back, I say!"

Cal edged forward, angry. "We had a deal!"

Murdoch pulled the money from his pocket and threw it in Cal's face. He hadn't wanted the bribe in the first place. "Your money can't save you any more than it can save me. Keep back!"

A steerage man rushed forward, trying to jump into the boat. Murdoch turned and fired at him. The man fell back, uninjured, but reluctant to try again.

Several members of the crowd moved forward, startled by the gunshot. Tommy Ryan, who had been shouting at Murdoch a few moments before, was shoved forward. Murdoch reacted instinctively, firing a bullet through Tommy's chest.

He was immediately shocked at his own actions. Fabrizio came forward, followed by Jack, who had been at the back of the crowd. They both crouched down beside Tommy, hoping against hope that he could be saved, but it was already too late. Tommy's eyes were wide and staring in death, his jaw hanging open. Blood poured from the wound, running down the once-pristine deck.

Fabrizio reacted first. "Oh, no! No! Tommy!" He mourned his friend's death. Looking up at Murdoch, he shouted, "Bastardo!"

Murdoch stared at them, still stunned by his actions. As another officer shouted to him, he saluted, then put the gun to his head and pulled the trigger, tumbling over the railing and into the water. The few bills left in his pocket fell out, floating on the surface.

Cal rushed away, searching for another boat. Jack and Fabrizio backed away, shocked by the turn of events. In the distance, the band struck up one last tune, which Jack recognized as _Nearer My God to Thee_.

The ship was tilting ever farther toward the bow. Water was beginning to wash up over the deck as Jack and Fabrizio returned to where Tommy's body lay.

Neither was comfortable with the idea of taking from the dead, but Jack knew that Fabrizio was not a strong swimmer, and that Tommy's lifebelt could mean the difference between life and death for him. Quickly, they removed Tommy's lifebelt, and Fabrizio put it on as the water washed up to them.

They headed down the deck, toward where one of the collapsibles was being launched. Cal was already there, having conned his way into the boat using a small child. He had set the little girl aside and was shoving people away from the boat with an oar, shouting, "No! You'll swamp us!"

Jack and Fabrizio came forward cautiously, knowing that they needed to get into the boat, but wanting to avoid Cal and his oar. As they approached the boat, a wave washed over the deck, sweeping them into the water and knocking most of the lifeboat's occupants—including Cal—into the sea.

The cold was worse than Jack remembered, worse because he was an adult now, and more susceptible to its effects, and worse because no one was trying to pull him out of the water. When he had fallen through the ice years earlier, his father had immediately been there, grasping his hands and pulling him from the water. He was on his own this time.

As Jack got his bearings and came to the surface, he looked around for Fabrizio. Finally he saw him—just as one of the massive smokestacks collapsed upon his friend and several other people. He waited, horrified, as a few people resurfaced, but Fabrizio did not.

Shivering, Jack made his way back to the deck. The collapsible had floated away with only a few people in it, and was too far away for him to reach in the icy water. Holding onto the rail to steady himself, Jack made his way toward the stern, noticing a familiar figure in the crowd as he did so.

Cal was also heading for the stern. In his now-sodden evening clothes, Cal looked little like the confident, debonair upper class gentleman that he usually appeared to be. His hair hung in his face, he was shivering, and he looked as frightened as everyone else did.

Jack shook his head. Cal had learned that money couldn't buy him everything, least of all a place in a lifeboat on a sinking ship. Jack grabbed hold of the stern railing, feeling a stab of anger at the White Star Line management for putting only half the number of lifeboats necessary on the Titanic. As slow as the ship was to sink, there was no reason for any of them to be in this situation, except for the fact that there hadn't been enough boats in the first place. He hadn't believed Rose at first when she had told him that there were only half the necessary number of boats, but now, watching the hundreds of frightened, desperate people clinging to the ship, he realized that she had been right. Many of the boats had been launched only half-full, so there would be an even higher death toll.

All around him, people were shouting, praying, trying to soothe small, frightened children. He looked to one side and saw Helga Dahl, the young lady Fabrizio had taken a fancy to, clinging to the railing. On the other side, a few feet away, was Baker Joughin, from the Titanic's kitchens, also clinging to the railing. Jack could smell man's liquor breath from where he was. A few feet away from Baker Joughin was Cal. He had dropped all pretense of nonchalance, and was clinging desperately to the railing, clearly terrified. Jack couldn't blame him. He wasn't feeling so confident himself. Not only was the water below freezing, but there was a strong possibility that the ship would suck them down when it sank. It might even explode. Jack had been on enough ships in his life to know the dangers.

There was a horrendous cracking sound as the ship split in two. The stern crashed down, knocking several people into the water and crushing those caught in its path. Jack fell forward against the railing as the stern hit the water. Around him were cries of "We're saved!" Righting himself, Jack shook his head. He knew better.

The stern rose into the air again as the sinking bow pulled on it. Jack climbed over the railing, balancing atop the stern. Glancing to the side, he saw that Baker Joughin and Cal had taken similar action. On the other side, Helga clung to the underside of the railing, her eyes wide with terror. Jack wished that he could help her, but there was nothing he could do. Helga lost her grip and fell, screaming, into the water below.

With a series of exploding sounds, the ship began to sink into the water. As the stern railing neared the sea, Jack took a deep breath, hoping that he would be able to get to the surface instead of being sucked down with the ship. As the ship pulled him under, he kicked for the surface, not even certain that he was going the right way. There was no light from the surface to guide him, and he could just as easily be swimming down as up.

Finally, Jack broke the surface. All around him, people shouted and screamed, begging for help, begging the boats to come back. As Jack looked around for something—anything—to get him out of the water, someone grabbed his shoulders, pushing him under.

Jack struggled back to the surface, shoving the person away. The person shoved him back under the water, kicking him soundly. Whoever it was seemed intent on drowning him.

Jack threw the person off as he resurfaced and shook the water out of his eyes. Straining to see in the darkness, he recognized Cal.

For some reason, Jack doubted that Cal had been deliberately trying to drown him. Cal was flailing in the water, his eyes wide with panic, and Jack realized that Cal had no idea who he had been shoving under the water; he had only been trying to stay afloat himself. At that moment, as Cal slipped beneath the surface and struggled back up, trying to stay afloat, Jack also realized that Cal couldn't swim.

How Cal had gotten to the surface without being able to swim, Jack wasn't sure. Maybe his struggles had carried him up. Whatever it was, Cal was coming toward him again.

Through his panic, Cal dimly recognized Jack. As his struggles brought him nearer to his nemesis, Jack grabbed him by the collar, keeping him afloat. Cal had no idea why Jack would do so, after he had tried to frame him and leave him to drown in a sinking ship, so he lashed out at him, assuming that Jack intended to drown him.

Jack saw stars as Cal's fist caught the side of his head, but he remained afloat, shouting at Cal and trying to drive some sense into him.

"Stop it!" he shouted, his fist still clenched around Cal's collar. As he saw Cal's fist coming at him again, he ducked, then punched Cal squarely in the jaw with his free hand. Stunned by the blow, Cal stopped struggling.

Jack had no idea why he was helping someone who would just as soon see him dead, but he swam out of the press of people, looking for something to help keep them afloat. As he moved through the water, Cal shook his head, reaching out to push Jack away from him.

"Don't even think about it," Jack told him. If Cal attempted to struggle, he might just let him go and leave him to his fate. The blow to Cal's jaw hadn't been as powerful as he had intended; his limbs were already stiffening from the cold, and even the constant activity of trying to stay afloat hadn't done enough to warm either of them.

"Let go of me, Dawson," Cal ordered.

Jack had had enough of Cal, and did as he asked. Cal immediately slipped beneath the surface. He immediately began struggling, choking on the sea water. Jack grabbed his collar again.

"Look," he told him, in a voice that allowed no arguments. "The water is below freezing, and no one can survive long in it, especially not if they're mostly submerged. The boats had to row away from the suction, and the crowds of people who would pull them down. The only chance that either of us has for survival is to cooperate."

Cal hated the idea of taking orders from this steerage rat, but at the moment he had to acknowledge the wisdom of Jack's words. "We need to find something to help us stay afloat," he told Jack, who had already figured that out but didn't tell Cal so. He would allow Cal to keep a modicum of pride.

"Right. Look around," he told Cal, scanning the water for anything that floated.

Cal was the first one to spot the floating deck chair about twenty feet away. He pointed it out to Jack, who moved forward through the water, trying to get to it before anyone else got the same idea, although the chances of that were growing slimmer as more people succumbed to the cold.

They reached the deck chair and half-climbed atop it, keeping their upper bodies out of the water. The chair was too small and unstable to completely climb atop, but it did keep them partially out of the water. Clinging to the chair, they huddled together for warmth as they waited for the boats to return.

XXXXX

A single boat made its way through the water, searching for survivors. "Hello! Is there anyone alive out there? Can anyone hear me?" Officer Lowe shouted, searching amongst the corpses for anyone who might still be alive.

Cal jerked his head up, hearing the voice from the rescue boat. He turned, forcing his half-frozen body to move. The boat was heading away from them, not noticing them in the darkness. He tried to shout, but no one heard him. He turned to Jack, who was slumped forward, his head just a few inches above the wooden deck chair.

"Dawson, wake up." Pulling one of his half-frozen hands away from the chair, he jerked Jack's head up. Jack didn't move. His eyes were closed, and he slumped forward again, his head touching the chair, as Cal let go of him.

Cal swore under his breath, already knowing what had happened. Jack had frozen to death. Trying to make sure, he took Jack's wrist, feeling for a pulse, but his hands were too cold to feel anything. Thinking as quickly as his cold-numbed brain would allow, he put his hand under Jack's nose, hoping to feel him breathing. Nothing. Jack was dead.

"Shit." Cal swore under his breath, knowing that there was no way that he could reach the boat without Jack's help. Close on the heels of that thought came another—how was he going to tell Rose?

The thought startled him. Why should he explain anything to her? She had betrayed him, running around with the gutter rat. It served them both right that Jack was dead.

He shook his head. Somehow, that didn't seem right. Jack had saved his life, keeping him from drowning even when Cal would happily have seen him dead. And now that Jack was dead, Cal could only feel guilt and remorse, rather than the triumph he had thought he would feel.

The boat was coming back in his direction, the flashlights glinting over the water. Cal waved his arm, trying to attract their attention. In minutes, the boat was there, and the rescuers pulled him inside, wrapping him in several blankets. The chair tilted as Cal was pulled into the boat, and Jack slid off, sinking into the dark, icy water. Cal couldn't help but stare as he disappeared into the depths.

The boat made one last circle of the area, searching for survivors, before returning to the cluster of boats gathered in the darkness.

XXXXX

The Carpathia arrived just after dawn to pick up the survivors. As soon as the last of the survivors had been loaded onto the ship, Cal went looking for Ruth and Rose.

He found them in the first class dining salon. Ruth was sitting at a table, looking shell-shocked, while Rose was talking to a steward, trying to discover whether Jack was alive or dead.

Cal walked up to them. "Rose, may I speak to you for a moment?" he asked, gesturing toward the table that Ruth was sitting at.

Rose stared at him, wide-eyed, for a moment, before nodding. She followed him to the table, but when she sat down, her voice was cool, her face expressionless, as though she was trying to hide from what she already knew to be true.

"What is it, Cal?"

"Rose..." He stopped. This was harder than he thought. "Rose," he began again, "about Jack..."

"I don't want to talk about him until I know whether he survived or not."

"He didn't make it." Cal spoke bluntly, then could have kicked himself as Rose's eyes filled with shocked, grieving tears.

"How do you know? How can you be sure?"

"He saved my life, Rose. I...can't swim, and he kept me from drowning. We found a deck chair to help us stay afloat, but by the time the boat came back, it was too late. He'd already died."

"I don't believe you." Rose glared at him, wishing that she could believe her own words.

"I wish I were lying this time," Cal told her, and he meant it. He pulled a waterlogged piece of paper from his pocket, trying not to tear it. "He had this in his hand when he died." He handed it to Rose.

Rose took the piece of paper and carefully unfolded it. There, in conte crayon, was a drawing that Jack had made of himself. Something to remember him by. She carefully spread the piece of paper out on the table to allow it to dry. The paper was water-damaged, but still legible, and she was glad to have something in Jack's memory. She looked up at Cal, her eyes overflowing.

"I'm sorry, Rose, I truly am," he told her, wishing that he could comfort her, but knowing that there was only one thing he could do for her now.

Rose looked at him, and realized that he truly was sorry for her loss. "Thank you, Cal," she whispered, her voice choked with tears.

"Rose, the wedding is off," he told her. Rose's head shot up, as did Ruth's. They both stared at him in shock.

"That is, if you want it to be," he told Rose. He did love her, but he had realized just how unhappy she had been with him. He would allow her to make the decision.

"You won't have to worry about money," he reassured them, knowing that money had been Ruth's reason for arranging the match in the first place. "In the coat pocket, you'll find the Heart of the Ocean. It's worth about two million dollars. That should be plenty of money to keep you both comfortable for the rest of your lives. In addition, there is some money in the inner pocket, about four or five hundred dollars. It should be enough to tide you over until you can sell the diamond."

Rose looked at him, her eyes filled with indecision. She had never been particularly happy with him, but he seemed to have changed since the previous night. Could they try again?

Cal got up to leave.

"Cal, wait." Rose called out to him. He turned, waiting for whatever she had to say.

"Cal, I...can't promise that I'll marry you, but...maybe we could give it another chance? See how things work out."

He nodded, sitting back down across from her. "I'd like that, Rose."

Rose smiled, nodding her head. Jack had given both of them a second chance, and she would always be grateful.

The End.


End file.
